Rapid Advance of LTE Spurs Convergence of Electronic Products

With its worldwide subscriptions expected to quadruple this year and increase by a factor of 70 by 2016, 4G long term evolution (LTE) will play an important role in the wireless industry advancement by driving the convergence of electronic devices, including smartphones, media tablets and mobile PCs.

Global 4G LTE subscribers this year are forecast to reach 73.3 million, up a whopping 334 percent from 16.9 million in 2011, according to IHS iSuppli. Another round of impressive triple-digit growth, equivalent to 181 percent, is expected in 2013 when 4G LTE subscribers total 205.7 million. By 2016, 4G LTE subscribers will reach nearly 1.2 billion strong.

Subscribers to the older 3G technology will continue to outnumber 4G LTE users, but the pace of growth for 3G will be significantly slower and not exceed 35 percent at any point from this year onward.

Francis Sideco, senior principal analyst for wireless communications at HIS said “The chief agent for the wireless industry’s continuing growth lies in the high-speed, low-latency performance delivered by 4G LTE,” he also said. “Providing much faster access speeds than comparable 3.5G and 3.75G technologies, 4G LTE makes real-time applications such as video streaming and multiperson gaming usable, not just possible. In turn, the increasing penetration of 4G is a factor in furthering the convergence of smartphones, tablets, computers and other devices. Such convergence allows manufacturers to create a market strategy in which applications can be leveraged across multiple devices through a common user interface — an increasingly important factor not just in a manufacturer’s capability to compete, but also a key element for success in the adoption of a device.”